Katie Moss and Orit Magia’s highly recommended picture book about Sukkot takes a kineticapproach to the autumn festival. The construction of the temporary dwelling,recalling the ancient Israelites’ sojourn in the wilderness, is as important as thefestive meals eaten within it. The plot is simple, as a girl, boy, and their familywork enthusiastically together, hauling, hammering, decorating, and cooking.This ultimate celebration of community takes shape with simple rhymes andbright colors that emphasize the multigenerational nature of Jewish life.
Each page condenses the excitement of the holiday into a short message. To ayoung child, “Tug, Pull, Shift! Grab the wood, now … lift!” is an invitation toparticipate. Magia’s images match Moss’s words, with the brother, sister, and kitpositioned under one of the logs that will form the sukkah. The brother isslightly taller, and the sister shorter, but they are equally engaged in carryingbuilding materials. A cat does not support any weight, but smiles and holds up its tail, as if also contributing.
Of course, children do not use power tools, but that fact is not an obstacle to their enjoyment and sense of responsibility. As their father drills one pole of the structure, the brother uses all his strength to hold it straight, while the sister holds up a nail, as if questioning whether it will be useful. Not only the material chores, but the very presence of every family member carries meaning. Even the bird, outlined in red, flies lightly through the scenes, holding a branch, and later a spoon, with its beak.
The colors are gorgeously bright, from the lush green of the sechach (covering branches) to the array of vegetables in the soup. As the sukkah transforms from a work-in-progress to a complete home, the girl holds an etrog as her father shakes the lulav. The text “Greet! Hug! Sit! Squeeze so all can fit!” accompanies a space now crowded with people, from grandparents to children and babies.
Hard work, prayer, and joy build in intensity to the holiday meal and singing, just as the scenes change from fewer figures to an overflowing crowd. The book ends with everyone holding hands up to the starry sky, and the cat asleep on the roof.
Emily Schneider writes about literature, feminism, and culture for Tablet, The Forward, The Horn Book, and other publications, and writes about children’s books on her blog. She has a Ph.D. in Romance Languages and Literatures.
